Milan defender Simon Kjaer ranked 18th at the Ballon d’Or and people complaining about it on social media have a short memory, writes Lorenzo Bettoni.

Less than six months ago, there wasn’t one single person on earth that would have disagreed about having Kjaer in the top 10 for the Ballon d’Or. Perhaps, somebody would have even given him the award for an achievement that went beyond goals and trophies.

In June, Kjaer saved Christian Eriksen’s life during Denmark’s opening UEFA Euro 2020 clash against Finland.

The Inter star collapsed after suffering a heart attack on the pitch and Kjaer was the first one to notice it and give him life-saving aid.

He was a hero, nothing less than that. And everybody recognised it.

However, today social media offered an example of how quickly people can forget.

Kjaer was ranked 18th at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, which is taking place as you read in Paris.

He finished ahead of players such as Mason Mount, Riyad Mahrez, but also Ruben Dias and Luka Modric.

Quite incredibly, many are complaining about Kjaer’s ranking, even joking about the mere fact that the Dane had been included in the 30-man shortlist. The name of the Milan defender is trending in the UK, with over 15,000 messages mentioning him.

Safe to say, some of those people take football way too seriously.

Kjaer may not have had a better season than some of the players that finished behind him, but what he did over the summer goes beyond football and that’s something people should never forget.

Aside from that, he also captained his national team, reaching the semifinal at the Euros and Milan fans know how important he was to snatch a top-four finish in 2020-21.

He played 39 games across all competitions with the Rossoneri and never put in disappointing performances playing a key role on and off the pitch with the Serie A giants who qualified for the Champions League for the first time in eight years.

The Danish defender is in Paris to attend the ceremony and will surely get the credit he deserves in the real world, outside social media.

5 thought on “People complaining about Kjaer’s Ballon d’Or ranking have a short memory”
  1. Eh? I thought you meant because he wasn’t high enough? But it’s that he was too high at 18!? Eh?! That just about sums up the nominal, insight of many football fans? If it didn’t happen on Twitter yesterday, then it might’nt as well not have happened at all? OK, it’s a football performance-related award, allegedly anyway, but character & personality should be a piece of it too, which it obviously isn’t, it’s an ego-driven, let’s light-our-own flatulence, guffaw, popularity contest where the same few, balloon’s are picked to win each time by an antiseptic, self-important, gentlemen’s club? I didn’t watch it but I saw him on Twitter + I did like that bit to be honest! When they were talking about him, you could tell he was a humble guy, he was genuinely flattered + was tryin’ to be professional but couldn’t help, almost breaking in to a smile! Bless him. If it was up to me, I’d have given it to him, or put him in the top 10 at the very least.

  2. People even said his inclusion is just because of the Eriksen incident. That’s just stupid. For me his ranking is absolutely deserved. You might say I’m biased but he captained Denmark to the Euro semis, then they qualified for the World Cup easily, and at club level he has had the best performances of his life time. Together with Ibra they lead Milan back into the Champions League.

  3. I don’t care where some buch of fools place him in a silly list of self congratulatory prima Donna’s. The man is a legend. He’s the heart of this rejuvenated Milan squad and his performances for his national team speak for themselves. Forget player of the year, he’s man of the year.

  4. He has helped bring stability to a shaky Milan back line. He’s consistent. He’s professional. He reads the game really well. He’s a great example to younger players.

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